Hello dear seeker of Jesus! What did you think of this slightly scary story today? I am not sure I would have felt all that safe near the man possessed by so many demons. And yet, how dreadful for him! The Bible is pretty clear that demons are real. I've pondered why Jesus agreed to let this legion of demons enter the herd of pigs, and I wonder if part of the reason was to demonstrate that they were real. The man wasn't just out of his mind. Real spiritual beings were inside him and when they left him, they went into the pigs. And then the pigs were drowned. Jesus is greater and more powerful than any demon. And when HE lives in us, we are inhabited by Love Himself and need not fear evil spirits. His "perfect love casts out fear" (John 4:18). It's a sobering reading. And I am sure no one who witnessed this restoration of a demon-possessed man ever, ever forgot it.
My recorded verse: Mark 5:19 "But Jesus said, 'No, go home to your family, and tell them everything the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been."
My response: You treat each of us so uniquely, Lord! To Peter and Andrew and all the disciples, the command was to follow You and leave their families. Yet for this man who'd been away from his family for years—the command was to go home. I wonder if he had a mama who had suffered seeing his demon-possessed state? What a GIFT to have her son restored to her!! I wonder who will be in Heaven because this restored man went home and told others all that the Lord had done for him!
Vs 13 leaves me wondering, those herdsmen just lost their entire livelihood. Did Jesus perform another miracle not recorded that replaced those pigs or provided for those families in a different way? Lord, I know you care for every person. And I know You somehow provided and cared for these people. Thank You for Your care for us, even if we don’t see it clearly.
Jenny, you think like I do! I always have questions like this and want to know MORE of the story! Were those herdsmen Jewish? It's doubtful because they were raising pigs. So, they were not going against their beliefs in doing this, yet they lost their income. Yet another question for when we get to Heaven. 🙂